Susan Isla Tepper presented her darkly comic play CLANDESTINE in an Equity Premiere Staged-reading, hosted by SHOPTALK, on June 10 at EAG Guild Hall Theatre, NYC. Her latest Novel “Hair of a Fallen Angel” was published by Spuyten Duyvil Books. A twenty-year writer, she’s written 12 published books of fiction and poetry and 7 stage plays. Honors include 21 Pushcart Prize Nominations. Her play ‘The Crooked Heart’ concerning artist Jackson Pollock premiered on October 25, 2022 at the Irish Repertory Theatre in NYC. Adapted from an earlier novel, it was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Susan is a Brand Ambassador for The Galway Review. A Youtube music video for her latest novel at: https://youtu.be/W2HVIc4NrqY

On The Road To Toledo

Again to awaken
exhausted, agitated, lost

Each time the dream
appears in different hues
but always night

As if El Greco
had a hand in
choosing the palettes
of land and sky
small houses clumped
along a cliff.

As is Toledo. As it was.

The day I boarded a bus
to escape the pounding
of Madrid
my expectations were
fanciful:
flower fields fragrant
stretching endlessly
the entire route.
A Toledo of pretty houses
bunched along a cliff.

From the bus
I took in arid rugged
brown overgrown land

while choking on gas fumes
coming through the windows.

The crowd of noisy tumultuous
passengers didn’t seem to mind.

Toledo. Not the bright
pretty spectacle I craved.

At the museum
doom
flooded from the El Greco’s.

In my twisted recurring dream
I wander tight passageways
between somber buildings, alone.
Searching.
Never a breathing soul in sight.

Digby Beaumont is a self-taught artist. His artwork has been published extensively in collaboration with writers of fiction, poetry and music. His subjects include portraits, figures, urban scenes and still lifes. He aims to convey a subject’s character, as well as a good likeness. His pictures sometimes suggest elements of a story. He uses techniques of acrylic painting, pen and ink drawing, screen printing and mixed media. Digby is also a widely-published writer. His stories and poetry have appeared in more than 100 magazines and anthologies, including The Best Small Fictions. Previously, as a textbook author, he had numerous publications, including international best sellers.